June 13, 2010

On Friday of last week I had the great opportunity to visit the garden of noted plantswoman and author, Pamela Harper. I have wanted to visit her garden ever since I first heard her speak and purchased one of her books, Time-Tested Plants: Thirty Years in a Four-Season Garden. I have met Mrs. Harper before as she occasionally shops at the garden center, but it took another customer, now a friend, to make my visit happen.

Her home and garden sit on a long waterfront lot, not far from where the York River runs into the Chesapeake. A beautiful setting for sure, but not without its perils. Hurricane Isabel and last November's nor'easter took their toll on both her house and garden. As you might expect, the garden is full of great plants and great plant combinations. Many of the things I saw on Friday, I saw for the first time. Not only did I enjoy seeing all that was planted, I also enjoyed Mrs. Harper's vast knowledge of horticulture and the story of her garden.

Unfortunately I did not take my best photos; I was busy trying to pay attention to Mrs. Harper and enjoy the day in front of the lens, not behind it. It was also a spectacularly clear and sunny day, great for being in the garden, not great for photography. After the tour we had a delightful lunch provided by my friend Donna Hackman (a noted garden designer and plantswoman in her own right) who arranged all this. Getting lost in conversation and gardening nearly made me late picking my son up from school.

Variegated Dogwood, Japanese Maple and Hydrangea Combination

Impatiens omeiana - Hardy to zone 7, maybe lower

Clematis texensis

Aristolochia fimbriata - White Veined Dutchman's Pipe

Lavender with a cool stool

Cornus kousa var. angustata

Argemone mexicana - Prickly Poppy

Natchez Crape Myrtle with Hydrangea

Kalimeris pinnatifida - Japanese Aster

The day was enjoyable, though I hope I will have the opportunity to see this garden and visit Mrs. Harper again, maybe earlier in spring, on a day with a little photography-friendly cloud cover.

10 comments:

I had hoped to visit her garden this spring but my plans were hampered. I hope to get there some day. Her book that you mentioned has been very influential and I've discovered lots of great plants in it.

I visited Mrs. Harper's garden last November, and it was completely enchanting. Like you, I was having trouble dividing my time between listening to her as she walked us through her garden and photographing our visit. This garden is probably the most perfect example I have ever seen of making a cohesive landscape out of a collectors garden. (even with the not-so-flattering light, your photos are beautiful.

Oh what a special opportunity - years ago Mrs. Harper was featured on HGTV's Gardener's Diary. She and her garden seemed to me to embody the best parts of gardening: enthusiastic knowledge, impeccably executed, generously shared. Like Layanee, I've treasured that book on perennial design. Those not-your-best pix are very nice indeed!